Related Articles

Espanola is located in northern New Mexico, a scenic and topographically diverse region. Situated in a high desert environment at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, Espanola is a mid-sized community with the largest availability of shopping and services between Santa Fe to the south and the Colorado border. This community comprising Native American, Spanish and Anglo ancestry is centrally located between popular New Mexico destinations, including Taos and Santa Fe.

Campgrounds in Espanola

Camping within Espanola consists of one private campground for tenters and RVs: Cottonwood RV Park (cottonwoodrv.com). While the campground has typical RV amenities such as water and electric hookups, atypical services also exist on-site, including an herb and nutrition store, spa, beauty salon and yoga studio. Cottonwood campground is perfect for the gaming enthusiast since it's located within 7 miles of three Native American-owned casinos -- Cities of Gold Casino, the Okay Casino and Big Rock Casino. Nearby services include banking and shopping at several national retail outlets, including a Walmart Supercenter.

Los Alamos Campgrounds

The city of Los Alamos makes an ideal destination for the space enthusiast. Most famously known as the site of World War II's Manhattan Project, where the atom bomb was conceived, Los Alamos remains one of the most active military research towns in the country. Located about 15 miles from Espanola, Los Alamos offers tourists more services and shopping in addition to tours of historically and archaeologically important sites such as Bandelier National Monument (nps.gov/band) which features well-preserved remains from native villages dating 10,000 years back. Bandelier offers undeveloped campsites for tents and small RVs, along with 33,000 acres of hiking trails and places to explore the surrounding wilderness.

Santa Fe Campsites

Campers seeking the most amenities and tourist attractions should consider camping in Santa Fe, just 15 miles away from Espanola. Santa Fe's city history spans more than 400 years, with so many striking architectural and natural wonders that it would take a lifetime to see them all. Among them, the historic Santa Fe Plaza is an ideal place to get your first feel for Northern New Mexico. You'll encounter dozens of Native Americans selling handmade local goods and artwork and some of the best Hispanic food found in New Mexico. Santa Fe offers several well-maintained RV parks for camping, but if you're looking for one of the best campground bargains in the city, try the Santa Fe Rodeo (rodeodesantafe.org) fairgrounds. The fairgrounds offer basic water, sewer and electric hookups at half the cost of most other Santa Fe campgrounds. Although tenters aren't allowed, the fairgrounds is the best RV camping bargain in the city.

Abiquiu

RV campers who want to be close to amenities but far enough to experience the best qualities of northern New Mexico wilderness should visit Abiquiu's Lake Riana Campground, an Army Corps of Engineers facility on the Rio Chama River less than 30 minutes from Espanola. Situated at 6,400-feet above sea level, Lake Riana features water recreation, restrooms with showers and hiking trails. The campground has 54 campsites, some with water and electric hookups. The campground is open from April through October. During the beginning and end of the season, campers can stay for free but there are no services available.

Resources

About the Author

Rene Agredano is a traveling journalist and entrepreneur based in Fort Collins, Colo. Since 1998, she has covered travel, home-and-garden, fitness, animal care and other lifestyle topics for publications such as "The Times-Standard" newspaper of northern California. Agredano holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from Chapman University.